Tag Archives: mushrooms

Forest Floor Mushrooms Watercolor Sketch

Posted on May 27, 2017 | 1 comment

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I have a choice.

I can let worry hijack my thoughts or I can just say, no, to them. It’s an epiphany.

What I find helpful is to journal about the worry and or anxiety, let it all out. And by journaling, I mean hand writing…analog not digital. Why? Because the thought travels from your brain, through your nerve endings, down your spine, down your arm, and on to paper. You’re contemplating each stroke. You’re not letting a keyboard form the letters for you. There is something about this process that is healing.

Now, if I’m angry about the worry, I will hand write in ALL CAPS as if I’m shouting, using more pressure on the paper, darker letters. My formed words have expression to them. They are not just punched monotone letters. They have urgency and emotion.

Next, the most important part……
I give it up to God. And then I choose to say, no, to the next thought of worry. No! I do not allow it any more of my energy or space in my mind. For the Word says:

You will keep in perfect peace him whose mind is steadfast, because he trusts in you. Trust in the Lord forever, for the Lord, the Lord, is the Rock eternal.
Is 26:3-4

There is no freedom in allowing worry to consume your mind. There is freedom in laying it at Christ’s feet and saying, no, to a returning thought.

Now, where do mushrooms fit in to the equation?

Sometimes being weighed down by worry can cause you to stop doing what you love. It’s such a heavy invisible weight that suddenly you can’t seem to muster the physical effort for the activities that you used to look forward to. Write your worries out, give them to God, then let them go, then do the things you love. Go for a walk. Be able to see those little mushrooms because your mind will be free to play and explore. Paint! See a friend!

You have a choice. Leave everything in His care.

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Posted in art, Artwork, God, nature, Paint His Love, sketchbook, watercolor painting, watercolor sketching

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Nature at Lake Katherine Sketch

Posted on August 12, 2011 | 3 comments
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flora and fauna lake katherine sketch

Do you want to go on a virtual field trip with me to Lake Katherine?!? Fascinating nature is ooozing from every corner this time of year and we’re loving every inch of it!

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First, we’ll start in the garden. Black-eyed Susans, Purple cone flower, and ornamental grasses surround the butterfly sculpture.

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And who enjoys the garden besides us? This tiger swallow butterfly enjoys the garden by drinking sweet nectar. I think this plant is Salvia, however I could be wrong.

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The clearwing humming bird moth also loves this plant too.

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Walking on the trail, I encountered this HUGE mushroom. The top was about 6″ wide and the entire mushroom had to be 6″ tall. I do not know what type of mushroom this is with scalloped edges. Or maybe perhaps it is so large that the top split on the edges when opening?

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Continuing on our trail…..look who’s crossing! A milkweed tussock moth caterpillar…..WHOA! He looks like a tiny (1″ long) yellow pipe cleaner with white and black hair tufts. NEAT!

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Finally we reach the lake and see our swan family. Dad, mom, and 6 juveniles swim together. The young fish for something good to eat and I love to watch them.

I hope you enjoyed this quick get-a-way to Lake Katherine in Palos Heights, IL.

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Posted in art, Artwork, Birds, butterfly, Chicago, hiking, moth, nature, Nature Sketching, sketchbook, swan, watercolor sketching, wildlife

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Mushrooms in the Woods Sketch

Posted on June 27, 2010 | 4 comments
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Country Lane Woods Mushroom 1

Journal entry:

6-16-2010
85°F mostly sunny, light breeze
Country Lane Woods, Cook County Forest Preserves Zone 6

The mosquitoes are vicious this afternoon. Humid wet conditions make them happy. I will put up with them for a little while and render my payment, a small donation of blood, to hear the trickling of the creek and the call of the blue jay above. The crickets in the grasses sing to me during my journey, I treasure their tune along the way. Today I find that my reward in the wood are several little mushrooms. Each posses their own personality, they are little gems on the forest floor.

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Country Lane Woods mushroom 2

Last week I went to Country Lane Woods for a quick hike. Due to the many recent storms, conditions are perfect for mushrooms, finding them is always a treat! These were growing in rich black soil, I couldn’t resist entering them in my watercolor journal. Here are the actual photos:

  

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Posted in art, Artwork, Chicago, hiking, nature, Nature Sketching, sketchbook

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Lichen, Moss, and Mushroom Sketch

Posted on December 3, 2009 | 5 comments

Just look at the beautiful specimen I found while hiking last Sunday! I always like to note what the weather conditions are because I think it is so vital to what you encounter in the woods. While I was hiking it was 41°F, raining and there was a light fog hovering above the horizon.

Here is what I found on a felled tree. Aren’t those the most beautiful puffball/earthball mushrooms you ever did see! There were hundreds growing on tree bark. My friend David Fischer of American Mushrooms.com told me that these are mature mushrooms. They stared out as a solid form before they releases their spores and became hollow. Speaking of spores, while observing these mushrooms, I took my pencil and tapped one of the shrooms… a brown cloud of spore smoke erupted from the hole. So totally cool.

Here is a close-up…

Notice the speckled skin. As an artist you must look at the little detail and include it in your sketch.

Here is my sketch. I did this real fast, maybe 20 minutes. I just wanted to include the lichen, moss, and puffball mushrooms. See, you don’t have to be a perfectionist and make everything exact, take the stress away. A quick little sketch will do and it will allow you to savor these memories for a long, long time.

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Posted in art, Artwork, hiking, nature, Nature Sketching, sketchbook, weather

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